asked the Minister for Local Government if he has received a recommendation for an increase of 15/-per week in the wages of road labourers employed by Monaghan and Louth County Councils; and, if so, if he will state (a) the date on which the recommendations were made to him, and (b) if the increases have been sanctioned, and, if not, why.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Wages of Road Labourers.
11.
Proposals for increases of 15/- a week in the wages of road workers were submitted by Monaghan County Council on 14th March and by Louth County Council on 28th February. Both proposals are under consideration.
Would the Minister say why it should take all this time to decide whether or not an increase of 15/- a week to road workers should be sanctioned? Is there any reason why road workers should be held up for six or seven weeks?
In the first place, they have not been held up for six or seven weeks. None of the proposals submitted to me is operative before 1st April, which is less than two weeks ago. Secondly, the Deputy should be aware that it has been the practice in the Department of Local Government when proposals emanate, as they usually do, at the beginning of the calendar year for increases for road workers, they are in fact held in the Department until a sufficient number of proposals have emerged from various local authorities, to establish the general pattern of these increases. That has been the practice and in addition, when these proposals are submitted and supporting data are not submitted with them, the local authorities in question are requested for that data. In the case of one of these, or both— I am not quite sure, but certainly in the case of Monaghan—the supporting data requested from them as a result of their proposals on 14th March, were received in my Department only on 3rd April.
Is the Minister not aware that the operative date of 2nd April was deliberately selected so that the councils would not be in a position of having to pay back money, as they call it, and thereby causing a certain amount of trouble on the calculating end of it? Is he further aware that both county councils unanimously decided to provide the necessary funds to pay them, so that it is not necessary to do what the Minister suggests, or does he intend, if he receives no further proposals, to hold them until later this year?
There are further suggestions and the Deputy should be aware of them, but apparently he is not.
I am well aware of them.
Furthermore, if the Deputy were aware of them, it is surprising that he should have chosen only two out of about 12. In regard to the complaint that the Deputy now seems to have about calculations and putting things out of gear, it is news to me that road workers are paid in advance. The fact that they are paid fortnightly is not an unusual feature——
Surely the Minister is aware that more than a fortnight has elapsed since 2nd April and therefore the first payment to the council workers cannot be paid until more than a fortnight has elapsed from 2nd April? Is it not a fact that it is because it is the lowest paid operative in the country, the road labourer, who is concerned that the big delay is taking place? If it were a judge who was involved, it could be paid back for six months.
The Deputy knows he is only talking through his hat.
The Minister is trying to bluff.
The Deputy has not got a clue. It is quite obvious from what he says that he does not know about half the increases proposed by local authorities. He is merely climbing up on the bandwagon with a Parliamentary Question so that he can say: "You would not have got action if I had not put down this question."
Question No. 12.